Thorrun Govind | Sykes Chemist

Having studied at King’s College London and undertaking her training in Newark on Trent. Thorrun qualified as a pharmacist in 2016 and has continued to work hard to promote community pharmacy utilising national and local media. This has been alongside her role as a locum pharmacist and her studies undertaking a law conversion course which she aims to use to defend healthcare professionals. Having appeared on the national BBC news talking about the pharmacy cuts she subsequently went on to appear on BBC Newsnight showcasing local pharmacy and highlighting the continued impact of government policies on the sector. This drew attention to the impact of each manifesto on the care pharmacists aim to provide.

She has continued to dispense free pharmaceutical advice to the public as the Resident Pharmacist on BBC Radio Lancashire, which she has been doing for over a year now. This involves speaking to a variety of local listeners of different ages and backgrounds. This has also led to her being approached to do the same since January as the Resident Pharmacist on BBC Radio London.

Actively seeking appearances on Radio 1 discussing illicit drugs and being quoted in national newspapers regularly Thorrun has been able to promote the sector, showcasing the great work pharmacists do in reducing pressure on the rest of the NHS. She has worked hard to advocate for the profession and raise awareness of the great work pharmacy teams do. Having been dubbed a ‘one woman pressure group’ for relentlessly campaigning for the sector and she is not scared to challenge key figures.

Thorrun actively pushes to get pharmacy on the agenda locally and nationally. Appearances discussing pharmacy have enabled her to “myth-bust” a number of common complaints patients raise about pharmacies generally, such as the time taken to process a prescription. It’s not quite as simple as “picking a box off a shelf,” and this has educated the public and engendered good will towards the profession.